Franchising

FAT Brands buys Johnny Rockets

Provided

August 13, 2020

FAT Brands has expanded its waistline, announcing Thursday that it was buying Johnny Rockets for nearly $25 million from an affiliate of private equity firm, Sun Capital Partners Inc., according to a news release. The deal, scheduled to be completed by September, adds 325 locations to the portfolio of FAT Brands, which owns 375 locations of Fatburger, Buffalo's Cafe, Buffalo's Express, Hurricane Grill & Wings, Elevation Burger, Yalla Mediterranean, and Ponderosa and Bonanza Steakhouses.

The deal also puts FAT's annual system-wide sales over $700 million.

Johnny Rockets was founded in 1986 on Melrose Avenue in Los Angeles, California.

"Similar to Fatburger, Johnny Rockets got its start in Los Angeles, and we couldn't be more pleased to add another true staple in our home city to our portfolio," Andy Wiederhorn, president and CEO of FAT Brands, said in the release. "This acquisition is a transformative event for FAT Brands in terms of scale and brand awareness. We see a lot of synergy with Johnny Rockets and our current restaurant concepts and we are eager to take the brand to new heights."

Duff & Phelps served as financial adviser to Sun Capital Partners, and Morgan, Lewis & Bockius LLP acted as its legal counsel. Loeb & Loeb LLP acted as legal counsel to FAT Brands, and Andersen Tax LLC served as its adviser.

FAT Brands bought Elevation Burger, a 44-unit fast casual brand for $10 million and paid $10.5 million in2017 for Ponderosa and Bonanza steakhouses.